From Acersecomic (a person whose hair has never been cut) to Zugzwang (a position in which any decision or move will result in problems), Project Twins’ A-Z of Unusual Words illustrates the English language’s forgotten vocabulary. These words probably won’t show up on the SAT, but they’re fun to learn nonetheless.
You can buy a postcard book of these prints from the Project Twins shop and see the full esoteric alphabet on their site.
A-Z of Unusual Words [Project Twins via Brain Pickings]
Acersecomic – A person whose hair has never been cut.
Biblioclasm – The practice of destroying, often ceremoniously, books or other written material and media.
Cacodemonomania – The pathological belief that one is inhabited by an evil spirit.
Dactylion – An anatomical landmark located at the tip of the middle finger.
Enantiodromia – The changing of something into its opposite.
Fanfaronade – Swaggering; empty boasting; blustering manner or behavior; ostentatious display.
Gorgonize – To have a paralyzing or mesmerizing effect on: Stupify or Petrify
